Folio 18v: Firdausi's Parable of the Ship of Shi'ism

Mehran DHN

In the introduction to the Shahnama, God launched seventy ships, bearing adherents to the religions of mankind, into a stormy sea. Clearly depicted on the central ship are the Prophet and his son-in-law and successor Ali sitting beneath the red canopy, while Ali's sons, Hasan and Husain, stand nearby. Details such as the inlaid stars and figures with very small elliptical pupils are characteristic of works attributed to Mirza 'Ali, the son of the master painter Sultan Muhammad.